If I had to predict which sport – men’s or women’s basketball – generated more viewers just based on this year’s March Madness Final Four tournament games, I would have easily picked the women. The games were, in general, faster and more engaging. The ball moved up and down the court quickly, creating constant action and excitement. The women played with skill and finesse. I was impressed by the ease with which players like Sarah Strong made baskets, especially from outside the 3-point line. In contrast, the men’s games seemed choppy, sloppy and floppy. There seemed to be more stoppage, more fouls, more shoving, and more falling down.
All of the Final Four games were exciting to watch, in my opinion. I did especially enjoy the nail-biter ending in the men’s Houston-Duke matchup, where Houston pulled out a win in the last few seconds. However, in general, I just enjoyed the women’s games more. I was shocked to learn that this year’s women’s Final Four games only drew about 25% of the viewers that the men’s Final Four games drew.
I confess, I’m not a huge basketball fan. I never played, and I don’t get excited about March Madness. I don’t understand all of the rules. I do, however, really enjoy a well-played game amongst super-skilled athletes, and I find the women’s game fits the bill.
According to Fox News, the 2025 women’s Final Four averaged 3.9 million viewers, which was actually a 64% decrease from the 10.8 million who watched in 2024. Of course, much of the massive increase in 2024 viewers was due to the hype surrounding star Iowa player Caitlin Clark, as well as other stand-outs like Angel Reese and Paige Bueckers.
The championship in 2024 increased 89% over the 2023 viewership numbers and 285% from the 2022 viewership numbers.
Even though Bueckers played in the final this year, it just didn’t seem to be enough to pull in the same number as last year.
This year’s Final Four was estimated to be the third most watched in history. But it was nowhere near the 15.3 million who watched the men’s Final Four (with the highest-watched game drawing 20.4 million), according to On3.com.
What I would consider a historic lack of respect for the game of women’s basketball seemed to be balancing out a little last year, with the women’s NCAA basketball championship drawing a whopping 18.9 million viewers. It’s clear, however, that last year was an outlier year, and there is still work to be done. But I believe it can be done.
Front Office Sports attributed some of the dip in viewership to blow-outs, like the UConn Huskies’ 34-point win against UCLA.
I think what is really going on, however, is the pervasive, continual undervaluation of women in sports.
For example, even though the women’s games attracted 25% of the Final Four viewers, the prize money the women’s teams received, which is based on their media rights deals, was only about 11.5% of what the men’s teams received in media rights prize money – $15 million to the women, compared to $216 million to the men.
Piggybacking on the “Caitlin Clark Effect,” I would have expected interest in the women’s Final Four last year to have trickled down into this year’s tournament and boosted viewership more than it did. But I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.
Today, more than 50 years after passage of Title IX, the majority of NCAA schools (86%) don’t offer athletic opportunities to women in proportion to their enrollment, according to Danette Leighton, a writer for USA Today. Proportionate spending is one of the central goals of Title IX, yet our country is still falling pathetically short.
What this ends up meaning to women in basketball is that the cycle continues well into their professional careers. For example, according to an AP News report, #1 picks in the NBA draft can expect to make about $13.8 million their rookie year, but the #1 pick in the WNBA will make less than $79,000, topping out in her career at around $242,000.
We need to do better.
